


It Started Out With a Kiss

by allfeelingeye



Category: The Fosters (TV 2013), The Fosters (TV 2013) RPF
Genre: Angst, Explicit Sexual Content, Fluff and Smut, M/M, Smut, Vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-27
Updated: 2016-09-09
Packaged: 2018-08-11 08:33:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7884181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allfeelingeye/pseuds/allfeelingeye
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jude Adams Foster has graduated from high school. Before college he needs an adventure. Away from home and his life. Something new. The past always follows you though. Always...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hot in all the wrong places

Ordinarily, he doesn’t do heat. High temperatures drive him mad. Humidity is just a killer. It gets hot back in San Diego, but living near the beach makes it more bearable. A bit. So a month in Nicaragua would, one would assume, have helped to get a heat-phobe used to high temperatures, right? Wrong. Jude Adams Foster just prefers the cold. His brothers and sisters think it’s because he’s miserable. This is not true, of course. He’s just…quiet. More reserved. And okay, he’s a bit antisocial. And fine, he doesn’t really have any really close friends but he _does_ have friends…high school would have been unbearable without any kind of social circle. It would be better at college, he constantly told himself. A better mix of people. People who are more…open minded. More accepting. Less judgemental. The kind of people he has spent the last month with. Yeah, it’ll be great.

 

He feels it as soon as he steps out of the terminal building. That wave of heat. It hits him like a blast when he’s out of reach of the air conditioning. Taxi…where the fuck is a taxi? He spots one. Its 10pm, it shouldn’t be this hot. It’s hotter than the mainland. And now on an island in the middle of the Caribbean Sea he’s stood at the airport looking for a taxi with a 15 kilo backpack weighing him down. One pulls up, and as quick as a flash he bundles himself and his bag in the back seat. Thankfully the driver has the windows open and the air breezes through the taxi as it rolls along, blowing Jude’s scruffy hair all over the place. He doesn’t mind though. It feels nice, relaxing. He lets his eyes close and leans back against the head rest. He’s had a long day. He left the place he was staying at 8am, had to take two buses and a rickshaw to get to the airport. Then his flight was delayed and he was starving as the ATM at the airport didn’t work and all he had to eat was a pack of salty peanuts on the plane…but you know what, fuck it…he was finally on a Caribbean island. He’d worked hard the last month, he deserved his little bit of paradise. By the time he checked in at the hostel and got to the dorm it was 10.30, and he was in desperate need of a shower. Sweat under his arms, down his back and…in other places.

 

There were eight beds in the dorm. Three of them had bags or other things on them, so Jude took an empty bottom bunk at the far end of the room near the window. The other people were obviously out. This was nice. No small talk. Not for a while anyway. Jude hated small talk. He’d had to do a lot of that over the last month volunteering in Nicaragua. Sharing a dorm room with 13 other people. All of them fighting over two bathrooms. The smell of other people’s bodies, snoring, no personal space, and dealing with people’s other bad habits. But to stay in a guesthouse and have his own room on this island would have hammered his budget so a hostel was something he just had to compromise on. He would only be in there to sleep anyway. He planned to spend most of his time on the beach or in a bar at the beach. Nothing strenuous. Just Jude time. He unpacked some stuff and shoved his valuables in a locker before grabbing his towel and heading off for a shower. It was nice, knowing he could take his time in the shower and not have people banging on the door needing to use the toilet or whatever. Nice that he could also…stand under the water…and think about things. Boys, mainly. Like the hot Swedish guy, Lucas, who was at the volunteering project. Lucas was way out of his league though. And Jude wasn’t even sure he was gay. He had a great body though…and took to wearing Speedos when they all went to the local pool and he filled the Speedos out so well…and then there was Tyler from Chicago who was definitely gay, but had a boyfriend. He had flirted a few times with Jude and he did think he was hot, with his red hair and freckles and this cute thing he would do with his jaw when he was laughing, but Jude kept reminding himself that Tyler had a boyfriend. He didn’t want to be _that_ guy.

 

Twenty minutes later Jude was suitably cleansed and climbed into bed. Sticking his earphones in he rolled over and drifted off to the sounds of Ed Sheeran’s latest album. He didn’t hear the two German girls come back to the room and make a racket as they got themselves ready for bed. Nor did he hear the American guy come in twenty minutes after that. Jude did wake up around 3am needing the bathroom. As he got up he surveyed the room, moonlight lighting the room up. All he could hear was the soft snoring of the guy in the bunk across from him. It wasn’t even snoring really, just a content sleep noise. Jude couldn’t make the guy out, as he had his back to him. Jude could see he had a toned back and defined arms though. Anyway…bathroom…need to pee. I definitely need to get laid he thinks as he pees. He resolves to try before he goes home.

\---

Jude’s awake just after 8. The sleep was good and he wants to hit that beach. Food though, food. Breakfast, he remembers, they have free breakfast at the hostel. His belly needs things in it. He pees again, splashes water on his face and pulls on some beach shorts and a t-shirt. He’s stuffing some things into his bag for the beach and as he turns round he stops dead. The guy in the bed…it’s _him_. He’s now lying on his back, still asleep, but with his head turned towards Jude. He looks…the same…but different too. On point hair, freckles…a bit of stubble, maybe four or five days’ worth. His sheet is only pulled up to his waist…fuck, his body looks…Jesus. Jude can’t move. Of all the islands in all the Caribbean…Jude pulls himself together, padlocking the locker as quietly as he can, grabbing his wallet and iPod and he heads for the door. As he opens it he sees the boy in the bed stir, and rub his left hand over his face. He’s waking up. I’m outta here, Jude thinks. He steps out and pulls the door shut. Shit, he thinks.

 

Connor fucking Stevens.


	2. How Did It End Up Like This?

**_Three months before_ **

_He’d done it. Signed up for it. And it was a big step. He’d never been out of the country, not even to Mexico which was really close to where they lived. So he was glad Callie suggested it to him. Stef and Lena weren’t so glad though. Stef was dead against it, stating that there would be “absolutely no way” her baby boy would be allowed to go to Nicaragua, irrespective of whether it was to volunteer and help build homes. Stef was a worrier anyway when it came to the kids. Factor in one of them wanting to go to Central America with all its “drugs and guns and killings” and you can see the problem. Stef, unfortunately, was one of those people who bought into all the media clichés about Latin America and that Jude would end up kidnapped or shot to death or used as a drug mule. In the end, Jude had to use the “well, I am eighteen now” card. And he was paying for the flights by himself with his bookstore job. So it’s not like he needed their permission, technically, nor their money. Getting a passport was a nightmare, what with his name change situation. But it all resolved itself and one week after high school ending he would be bound for Nicaragua. Stef and Lena ultimately gave their blessing once Jude had promised to be back for graduation. He was the last of their kids to graduate and this stuff was important to them._

_An adventure…an adventure before college. That’s the way he was looking at it. Getting out of his comfort zone and doing something new. Meeting new people. And helping other people, obviously. The charity built new homes in rural areas of Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Belize and unlike a lot of ‘volunteer charities’ they didn’t ask their volunteers to pay for the experience. You had to buy your own flights, of course but they house everyone in a dorm, and they only asked for a small contribution for food each week ($20) but aside from that it wouldn’t cost Jude much at all. He had put in a lot of hours at the bookstore though, in between classes and studying, as he needed some extra cash. Whilst researching Nicaragua he discovered that there were quite a few islands close by in the Caribbean Sea. And they weren’t too expensive to fly to. So he decided: three and a bit weeks of volunteering and a few days in some Caribbean paradise. Perfect!_

**Back in paradise…**

Perfect?! Ha! This is some kind of voodoo shit, Jude thinks. He breezed into the breakfast room, grabbed some fruit and a couple of bagels and quickly made his way out of the hostel. He needed to get away from there, and without being seen. Stepping out into the street he notices it’s pretty quiet. Not so many people, no traffic, a slight breeze. He can see the sea from the doorstep. Beach, he thinks. Beach. Right now. And so he goes. And he tries to put it out of his mind. The ‘it’ being _him_ , of course. Just concentrate on the sand and the sea…take in the Caribbean Sea air. He finds a spot on the quiet beach, quite a way down to the left from the hostel. Surely no chance of stumbling across Connor until later on. Surely. Jude has a nice tan already from his 3 weeks in the Nicaraguan sun. At least, he does on his arms, face and neck. His skinny upper body is the same pasty white it always is. So he resolves to fix that and is fairly liberal with the amount of sunscreen he uses there. And he lies there in the ever increasing heat, and thinks…and thinks some more. I’ll run into him, he surmises. It’s inevitable. Unless…no, a hotel on his own would be too expensive. And he’s already paid for his dorm bed. Move rooms maybe? Well, can’t do that either as they only have one dorm. Fuck. Maybe Connor will leave today. Maybe he’s been here a while already and Jude will get back and he’ll be gone. Yeah, that would be great. Totally avoid him. And not have to deal with…the shame. Over four years later and Jude was still…still ashamed. He cringes even thinking about it…

 

_“…the only two gay boys in our grade…”_

Why did he ever say such a thing? What kind of moron would think something like that would be true? Or worth saying out loud? Jude, that’s who. And seeing Connor again…and Connor seeing him…he would have to deal with that. Try and…explain himself? Apologise? A guy shuffles past selling cold drinks. He has water. And sodas. And beer. Too early for beer, Jude. He’d only gotten properly drunk for the first time in his life on his first night at the volunteer centre in Nicaragua. It was a thing there: people would work hard during the day, lots of manual labour, and at night they’d buy beers from a local _tienda_ and kick back and chill. Jude had 4 bottles of beer that first night and was sloshed. It helped him blend in with the others though. 9.30am on the beach though…too early for drinking. He didn’t want to look like one of those guys he would sometimes see on the beach near home, sucking on paper bags before lunchtime. Grape soda would do.

 

**Back at the hostel…**

“So, yeah man…you have to go. Seriously…so worth the money. Even more beautiful than some places in my country.”

 

Connor nods. It sounds perfect. The way this guy describes  it. And obviously he has no way of determining if this place is more beautiful than this guy’s country. Obviously, Brazil must be beautiful. It’s just that Connor hasn’t been there. This Cayo Aguila though…two small islands out in the middle of the Caribbean Sea…sounds like heaven. The Brazilian guy, Thiago, had gone there the previous day. The trip cost like $100 but they take you there and back by speedboat and feed you and there’s an open bar…what’s there to say ‘no’ to?! Connor’s sure: he’s going. He’s also sure about something else: this Brazilian guy is flirting with him. He’s touched Connor’s bicep twice now. Clearly the tank top was a good idea. This Brazilian guy is pretty cute, after all. Speaks great English too. Connor is already thinking…this guy must have his own room, as he wasn’t in the dorm.

 

“So, Thiago…um, you are travelling alone, yeah?”

“Yes, I prefer to travel alone. Some of my friends are crazy, man. And you? You travel here by yourself?”

“Yeah. I’ve just come fro-”

 

Connor doesn’t get to finish his sentence as a guy suddenly comes from nowhere and bear hugs Thiago from behind. Thiago gets up and returns the hug and the pair start chatting away in what Connor assumes is Portuguese. Politely, he excuses himself and leaves. He definitely hears Thiago say the name ‘Connor’ to his friend as he leaves. Connor definitely wants to see him again later. Beach again, he thinks. Beach, and some kind of cocktail and some people watching. Ok, guy watching. From behind his sunglasses. When the bodies look as good as they do here then it would be rude not to, right? He reaches the end of the street that merges onto the beach. He heads to the right, close to a collection of trees where there’s a bit of shade if it gets too hot. He dumps his stuff down and rolls his beach mat out, then pulls his tank and shirts off. This island trip is the first time he’s felt comfortable getting around in just Speedos. He has the body to pull them off, but he’s always felt…conscious?...when he’s been to the beach back home. Everyone wears shorts. Only old guys wear Speedos. Here though…all the young guys wear them. They all seem to shave their body hair too. Chests, armpits, even legs some of them. Connor hadn’t taken to shaving his body hair yet. He didn’t even have that much anyway. He sat down and propped himself up on his elbows. And he started thinking about Alex. It had only been a couple of months since they had broken up. Connor still missed him. It’s not like he thought about him all the time, just…at times like this, in a place like this, when Connor would _know_ that Alex would have loved it here. Alex had moved on though, dumping Connor and what they had in one fell swoop. I’m two-for-two now, he thinks. Two boyfriends, and dumped by both. College though…College would be different. Connor decided he would play the field. Wring all the good experiences out of it that he could. Especially where boys were concerned. He jumped up and headed off for a morning swim.

 

**Early evening…**

“So yeah, man, my apartment overlooks Ipanema. I earn a good salary so I can afford it. Only to rent though. If I want a house I have to move to a different neighbourhood.”

 

Thiago has spent the last hour flirting with him like crazy. He’s flirted back. Or at least he’s _tried_ to flirt back. He hasn’t had much experience with that kind of thing. Flirting. He never really hung around other gay guys that much. There was the Tinder guy in junior year that he ended up sleeping with, but that was more about…convenience. Losing his virginity. That kind of thing. What was his name again? Tom? Tim? It doesn’t matter. Thiago though...Jude could totally picture himself doing things with him. He’s older, maybe 25 or so. And he’s currently sat opposite Jude in the hostel kitchen in a t-shirt and navy Speedos. Jude’s only looked at the bulge once or twice. Definitely not more times than that, nope. He’d been convinced by Thiago that he should visit Cayo Aguila, and so had paid for a ticket for the next day. He was leaving in two days so it didn’t matter that all his money was now nearly gone. It was a shame, he thinks, that Thiago wasn’t going with him to this Cayo Aguila. He wouldn’t mind seeing him in Speedos without the t-shirt…

 

After a while Jude excuses himself to go and shower the beach off. He had spotted a little beach café earlier in the day that he planned to visit for dinner and a beer. The dorm was empty when he got back. The girls who were there this morning were gone, and so was their stuff. Connor’s stuff was still there. No sign of the boy though. Jude is relieved. All day he had to work himself up to going back to the dorm. Trying to work out what he would say, if he could force himself to be casual about seeing him. He noticed something poking out of Connor’s bag. A bandana. A Stars and Stripes one. It…yeah, it looked like the one Jude bought for him back…wow, a long time ago. Jude bought it for him from a shack near the beach in San Diego. He was surprised Connor still had it. His stare lingers on it for a few more seconds before he grabs his towel and a pair of clean boxers and heads for a shower. As he’s drying himself off he accidentally catches his phone with the towel and knocks it into the toilet. “Shit!” he cries out, and retrieves it. It was already halfway trashed, with a cracked screen and a full memory. Still, he didn’t want to be totally cut off from home. He wraps the towel around himself and heads out of the bathroom with the intention of heading down to the kitchen ASAP and sticking the phone in a bag of rice. As he walks into the dorm he stops. There’s someone stood dead ahead. And they’re staring at him. Hazel eyes. Blonde hair. Mouth agog. And he looks totally surprised. The blonde boy takes two steps towards him, and not once does the surprised expression leave his face. The silence is shattered when Jude drops his phone on the floor. It’s fucked now. The phone. The trip. Everything. It’s all fucked.


	3. Just the Ticket

“Um…why…what are you doing here?”

Jude shrugs slightly in response, and gestures with his right hand to nothing in particular.

“Just…you know…visiting…and stuff.”

 

Connor nods slowly, still trying to process laying eyes on Jude for the first time in…a long, long time. It’s only then that he notices Jude’s state of undress. He’s in a towel. His hair is wet but still looks…it looks good. Jude himself becomes increasingly aware of the fact he’s been stood in front of Connor for just over a minute now in nothing but the towel. He needs to move. He breaks the eye contact and crouches down to pick the phone off the floor. He’s looking for the boxers he took in the bathroom…they’re still in there. Standing again he makes eye contact with Connor, gestures with his thumb towards the bathroom and takes off. He’s in there about 30 seconds as he finishes drying and pulls on the boxers, and drapes the towel around his neck. When he gets back in the room Connor is sat on his bunk, pulling something out of his backpack. Jude pulls on clean shorts and t-shirt and sits down on his own bunk. When he looks up Connor is already staring back at him and looked ready to speak. Here we go…

 

“So…you’re just visiting?  Are you, like, travelling, or…?”

“Oh…um, travelling, yeah, but just for…I’m going home in a couple of days. I’ve been in Nicaragua for a few weeks…like, volunteering, and stuff. I’m here for…just to hang out for a few days. You?”

“Kind of…um, yeah, I’ve been in Costa Rica…same kind of thing.” Connor thinks about something for a second. “Um…were you volunteering for Home Sweet Home?”

Jude looks surprised, but replies in the affirmative. “Yeah.”

“Me too…cool.” Connor looks down at his hands. He’s fidgeting. “So…how are…how have you been?”

“Yeah, good I guess. I start college in the fall. Got my graduation next week. Are you…like, college, is that what you’ll be doing, or…?”

“Oh…yeah. I go home in like, what, three days or something. I missed my graduation ceremony actually, it was yesterday. I mean, apparently it was good and there was a cool party that I missed too but I’ll see people when I get back. Need to see them before I leave. I’m moving in a couple of weeks and so…”

“Oh,” replies Jude, “so…um, you’re moving away to college already?”

“Well, kind of…basically I’m-”

 

Connor never got to finish his sentence. The dorm room door swung open and one of the staff led two new guests in, giving them the standard “here’s your bed, there’s the bathroom” kind of spiel. This gives Jude his chance. He gets up from the bunk, reaches for his wallet and phone and goes to leave.

 

“I, um, gotta go out for a while…I’ll, um…yeah…” and heads out of the dorm, leaving Connor sitting there. The blonds stays sat on the bunk for another couple of minutes as the two new guests, two Irish girls, settle themselves in. They try to make a bit of standard travelling small talk with him but he just can’t bear it so he makes a polite excuse and leaves as well. He doesn’t see Jude in the hallway or in the reception area. Is he glad about that? Or disappointed? Fuck. Ten minutes ago everything was fine. And now _he_ has reappeared. If he were religious Connor thought this would be some higher power trying to send him a message. It’s not like he hadn’t thought about ever seeing Jude again. There would have been a fair chance of  it happening, especially now that…well, it’s happened anyway. The question now would be: what would happen next?

***

Jude settles himself at the beachside café bar. It wasn’t that bad, he thinks. It definitely could have been worse. Absent-mindedly he orders himself a burger and a beer. He takes out his phone and then remembers it’s broken. Whether it’s the toilet water or the drop onto the floor that’s killed it he’s not sure. He’s tempted to launch it towards the beach. It would probably be a decent throw too. Three and a bit weeks of manual labour had been good for Jude physically. Who would be impressed by his throw though? Probably nobody. The beer arrives and Jude drains a third of the bottle in one go. Maybe the heat made him thirsty. Maybe not. Look, he tells himself, you won’t have to see him that much tomorrow as you’ll be out the whole day at Cayo Aguila. And then you leave the next day. It’ll be fine, he might avoid you too. Then when you leave you’ll be free of him again. Yep, that’s the plan. What a plan. Can’t fail. He drinks more of the beer, and begins to relax.

 

Across from the café bar there are a few stalls selling souvenirs and street food and a mix of locals and tourists browsing them. Jude’s about halfway through his burger and takes a large bite. As he looks up he sees him. He’s at the chicken shack. Buying food, obviously. Connor turns and Jude can see he has a tray of some kind of chicken in his hands, and a plastic fork. Connor sits down at one of the plastic tables set up in front of the shack. Jude has stopped chewing, the food still in his mouth. It just…hits him, really. He’s hot. As fuck. Connor, that is. Obviously Jude has always thought he was hot. But now…in this light, with the sun going down…his beach hair, those arms…how cute he looks when he’s eating. Jude tries to collect himself, and resumes chewing. He puts the burger down and picks at his fries. Takes another sip of his beer. The bottle’s empty now. He doesn’t notice the passage of time. He doesn’t notice the waitress put a fresh beer on his table even though he’s pretty sure he didn’t ask for one. What he does notice is someone stop in front of his table. He looks up. And of course it’s him. Smiling down on him.

 

“Hey Jude.”

***

It’s like his brain separates from his body. In his head he’s screaming “RUN!” but his arm gestures for Connor to sit. Why has he done that? What does Connor sitting down actually achieve? Then all of a sudden he’s sat in front of Jude, signalling for the waitress to bring him a beer. A bit presumptuous, no? So now he has to drink with him. There’s an awkward silence now, as they wait for Connor’s beer to come. Jude can feel some sweat dripping down his back. It must be the humidity. Yeah, the humidity. The sweaty armpits, and palms…yeah the humidity. Nothing to do with Connor. Nothing at all.

***

“So…it’s nice here, huh? The island, I mean.”

“I…I guess, yeah,” replied Jude quietly.

“Puts the beaches in San Diego to shame. I mean, Costa Rica was really pretty but here…kind of like Pirates of the Caribbean. Without the pirates and stuff obviously.”

Jude nods and takes a sip of beer. He doesn’t really know what to say. Fortunately Connor seems to be in a chatty mood.

“So…maybe…look, it’s been a long time since we’ve spoken. We’ve only seen each other once since…since, you know… _it_ happened. Do you think…shouldn’t we try and …clear the air? You know, since we’re both here in this place.”

Jude couldn’t think of anything he would rather do less. Talking about the past was probably the thing he enjoyed doing the least. Especially as it usually involved dragging up his mistakes.

“I don’t…I don’t know if I’d have anything to say that would be worth hearing, Connor,” said Jude regretfully, playing with his bottle and avoiding Connor’s gaze.

“That’s not true. I always enjoyed hearing you talk.”

“Are you like…looking for a…an apology or something? Or an explanation? Because…I don’t know if I have either for you.”

“It was years ago, Jude. We were still kids. I mean, I guess we still are, kinda. But…you know what I mean. Why don’t we…why don’t we just…catch up? No drama or anything, I promise.”

Jude met Connor’s gaze again. He had such a friendly expression on his face. His freckled face. Jude bit down on his lip. And nodded slowly.

 

So they caught up. Connor talking about Los Angeles and his sports, and the things he did and didn’t like about living there. Jude got uncomfortable when Connor talked about Alex, his boyfriend throughout Junior and most of senior year, and how he had been dumped not long ago. Jude talked about home, his brothers and sisters, how much he was looking forward to starting at UCSD in the fall. He left out the part about hooking up with a guy off Tinder. They shared their experiences from Nicaragua and Costa Rica, and Connor was surprised that Jude expressed an interest in maybe going backpacking in Europe at the end of freshmen year. Jude had never really been the adventurous type, irrespective of him being here in the Caribbean. They spent nearly two hours chatting, and Jude had grown increasingly relaxed. Sitting with Connor was…nice. It was nice. Hearing his voice was nice too. Looking at him…the eyes, the freckles, the way his hair moved in the breeze. Jude was staring. He just didn’t realise he was doing it. Connor reaches out and places his hand on Jude’s.

 

“Hey, you ok?”

 

Jude snaps out of his trance.

 

“Sorry…I was just…”

“You looked like you were a million miles away…”

“No…I, um…it’s the beers. And I’m just tired. It’s…it’s been a long day. And I need to sleep…I’m going on a boat trip tomorrow.”

“Oh,” replies Connor, “to Cayo Aguila?”

“Um…yeah. How did….”

“I’m…I’m going on that trip too.” Connor swallows thickly although he isn’t aware he does it.

“Okay…so…okay.” Jude’s feeling a bit anxious again, but he tries not to let it show. They pay for their beers and stroll back to the hostel. There’s about a foot of space between them as they walk. Jude feels like he can feel Connor’s body heat. He must be imagining it though. Their walk is quiet. And the silence continues as they both get dressed for bed. Jude goes to the bathroom to change after Connor comes back from brushing his teeth. When he walks back into the dorm Connor is bent over in a tight pair of boxers, doing something with his backpack. He straightens up and turns around. Jude looks away. He’s glad of the low light in the room as he knows he is blushing. Why would he wear underwear that tight, Jude wonders? Connor goes to get into bed and Jude can’t resist peeking at him again. Fuck, he thinks. You can’t look like that. You just can’t look like that. If only Jude knew what sight would await him on their boat trip…


	4. A Game of Sun and Speedos

Chapter 4: A Game of Sun and Speedos

They had to be at the marina for an 8am departure so there wasn’t really any time for small talk as they got up, dressed and headed out of the hostel. Tiredness kept the awkwardness to a minimum. Until Jude saw the boat, that is. Then it was awkward. Jude had in his mind a big yacht taking them out into the sea. Where he could relax, enjoy the Caribbean Sea air, kick back with a cold drink…but noooo. None of that. Instead it was an oversized speedboat designed to sit around thirty people. The woman he had bought the ticket off said the journey would take at least 45 minutes. 45 minutes in this death trap?! Jude had never been on a boat. Connor had, and didn’t seem that bothered by this one. He stepped down into the boat with ease, like a pro. Jude hovered on the pier, unsure of his footing. Connor extended a hand, which Jude hesitated in taking but had to so he didn’t fall into the damn boat.

 

For Jude it was a 45-minute journey mostly from hell. For ten minutes the boat moved gently away from the island, but after that it was bouncing constantly on the choppy Sea. Jude was holding onto the rope on the side of the boat for dear life with one hand, the other gripped to the seat. Connor tried to make conversation but was getting little or nothing in return. All he could focus on was not falling out of the boat. It took something unusual to distract him from his fear. And that unusual thing was Connor’s hand. Connor placed his right hand over Jude’s left, the one gripped to the seat. Jude turned to look at him.

 

“It’s ok Jude…you aren’t going to fall in or anything. I promise.”

 

It was like everything around him had vanished. The boat, the sea, the other passengers…all he knew was that he was looking straight at Connor, and that Connor’s hand was on his. His breathing relaxed. Connor was smiling at him.

 

“You okay now?”

“Yeah,” whispered Jude. He doesn’t know if Connor could hear him. The noise of the boat engine was loud.

“Good. Not long to go now.” Connor returned his gaze to the horizon.

 

Not long after some trees and a land mass came into view. The closer they got the more excited the passengers became. There were two small islands, separated by a stretch of sea. Crumbs in the middle of this vast Sea. Everyone is agog at the beauty. Clear water, beautiful, clean looking sand….heaven. Even Jude had relaxed by now. As soon as the boat had beached everyone began to pile onto the sand and fan out and the crew began unpacking boxes and coolers. Connor headed over to some trees with a clearing between them. Jude followed dutifully. It took all of ten seconds to clear the trees and emerge on the other side of the small island. Connor stops dead. Jude follows beside him. Neither says anything. They don’t need to. Connor’s thinking it’s one of the most beautiful views he’s ever seen. Not as beautiful as…well, it’s the most beautiful _place_ he’s ever been, anyway. He drops his bag on the sand and pulls off his tank top.

 

“How about a swim? That water looks too good not to jump straight in, right?”

“Sure,” replies Jude. He pulls his t-shirt off and stuffs it in his bag, getting his sunscreen out. It’s only just after 9am but he burns like a peach. He gets as far as opening the cap before he has to stop moving. He sees Connor slide his beach shorts down and is met with the sight of his ex-boyfriend in red Speedos. Connor’s butt…in Speedos. _Oh God, please don’t turn around…because I just can’t take it…oh no…he…_ and Connor does turn around. And Jude stares. At the bulge. If anyone were to observe this scene they’d see one boy in Speedos, staring at a boy in shorts with his arm frozen in mid-air and holding a bottle of sunscreen. Jude looks up and sees Connor staring at him.

 

“Enjoying the view?,” smirks Connor, and then he laughs softly. Jude takes a couple of deep breaths, and then despite himself he giggles along with Connor.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to…you know…”

“I don’t mind…don’t worry about it.” He winked at Jude which made him blush even deeper than he already was.  “Come on, we’ll worry about the sunscreen later. I’ll race you!”

 

So they swam in the warm Caribbean water, not saying too much and just enjoying the ambience. Connor kept stealing glances at Jude when he wasn’t looking. His dark hair hadn’t been cut in a while, and when he would re-emerge from under the water it fell across Jude’s face in just a way that made him…it just looked so good. After twenty minutes Jude suggested getting out of the water so they made their way back to the beach. Connor headed to get them something cold to drink and he came back with two bottles of water and two beers. Connor was in a cheeky mood and so decided to see how far that mood would get him.

  
“Do you want me to put sunscreen on your back? Don’t want you to get burned do we?”

“Um…ok, sure.”

 

Jude lay down on his towel and propped his chin up on his interlocked fingers. The sunscreen was already warm when Connor squeezed it onto Jude’s back and shoulders. Jude felt Connor touch his shoulders gently, rubbing the cream into his shoulders and neck. He felt himself shiver, despite the heat, and Connor must surely have felt the goosebumps. Slowly, Connor worked his hands down Jude’s sides and back. Ordinarily someone might ask why it would take another person so long to rub sunscreen into them. Jude didn’t ask though. He didn’t care about that. All he knew was that lying there with his eyes closed and Connor’s hands all over him was just about the best feeling of his life. Jude flinched slightly when Connor’s fingertips moved over his sides, a consequence of being ticklish. Then something happened that Jude thought was going to give him a heart attack: Connor reached the waistband of his shorts. He felt Connor’s fingers on the very bottom of his back, and the tips slid under the waistband, rubbing more of the cream in. By now the boner Jude was experiencing was solid, and trying not to react to it was uncomfortable. He was so tempted to roll over…to let Connor see…but he couldn’t. He couldn’t do that. Connor would think he was a weirdo. Eventually, and Jude didn’t know how long for sure, Connor declared himself done.

 

“Can you do me too?” Connor held out a bottle he had taken from his bag.

“O-of course. Just, um…lie down.”

Connor lay down on his stomach, and Jude reached out, still on his own stomach, and took the bottle from Connor. With his general shorts area safely out of Connor’s line of vision Jude sat up and positioned himself behind Connor. The liquid in the bottle…it wasn’t regular sunscreen.

 

“What is this stuff?” he asked.

“It’s tanning oil. Regular sunscreen leaves me looking a bit…pasty.”

“Oh. Ok then.”

 

Jude squeezed some onto his hand. It was greasy. It kind of reminded him of…anyway, he squeezed some onto Connor’s back and shoulders. It was only now that he was taking in how well defined Connor’s back muscles were. As he rubbed the oil into Connor’s shoulders he had to resist the urge to crouch over him and kiss him on the neck. He was taking in every inch of Connor’s body. He felt so…warm. His skin was golden. Jude was trying very hard to keep his hands steady. As he got to the bottom of Connor’s back, all he could see was the Speedos…and imagine what was underneath them. Should he do what Connor did to him? Suddenly Connor shifted, and moved the waistband of the Speedos down ever so slightly. The skin below the waist was white. Jude felt a great urge to trace the line with his fingers, oil or no oil. He softly moved his fingertips over the exposed white skin, and his left hand brushed over Connor’s tailbone, eliciting a giggle from the blonde.

 

“Sorry, I’ve always been ticklish there!”

 

Jude was done. And still had the boner. He needed to move.

 

“I’m just…I’m just gonna wash the oil off my hands.” He moved down to the water’s edge, and crouched down, running his hands through the water. Lusting after Connor…it had been some time since he had done that. How would he cope with a full day of Connor looking like that?

 

What Jude didn’t realise was that Connor was having similar thoughts. Jude’s touch…it had been electric. Even Alex…Alex touching him had never felt like that. He turned to check Jude wasn’t looking, and reached under himself. Very quickly using his fist he pushed down onto his beach towel and made a slight dip in the sand where his…where his sensitive area was. Jude’s touch had made lying on his front _very_ uncomfortable…but he couldn’t move off his front just yet. So he laid there, the groove in the sand helping his comfort level, and thought long and hard about how he was going to get Jude’s hands on him again.


	5. On the Brightside...

They weren’t getting fed until midday so Connor grabbed a couple of snorkels and face masks from the boat crew for him and Jude. They walked down to one end of the small island where there were no other people. Connor led the way. He gave Jude a quick demonstration and then couldn’t resist holding back on asking something that was on his mind.

 

“So…how have you found the whole high school dating thing?”

“Oh…well, um…I went on a few dates. Nothing…nothing serious or anything. I guess…I dunno, maybe it just wasn’t for me. The dating thing, I mean. I don’t mean being gay wasn’t for me. Because…it is. For me.”

Connor nodded without reply. His brain was going into overdrive now. Obviously he had an attraction to Jude. Did Jude feel the same way though? Should he do anything about it?

***

They swam, and talked, and swam some more. Then they ate. And drank. And relaxed under some palm trees. In the afternoon they waded across the waist high water to the second, smaller island. All the other visitors were on the main island. So it was just the two of them wandering the golden sand. Connor had brought his expensive looking camera too. He forced Jude into a pose, and then made him play photographer. Jude got some enjoyment in using the zoom to focus in on Connor…particularly on the area just below his waist. Jude was glad that _he_ wasn’t wearing Speedos or he might have given the game away.

***

That evening, back on dry land and heading back to the hostel neither boy knew how the rest of their night was going to pan out. Jude wondered if he should ask Connor if he wanted to eat with him. They needed to eat, right? As they got in sight of the hostel Jude bit the bullet.

 

“So…do you wanna go and get a burger later? Or…something else? To eat. Later.”

 

He added the “To eat. Later” quickly at the end. Obviously he didn’t want Connor to get the wrong idea. Absolutely not.

 

Connor agreed and so they bought fish, rice and plantain from the cart near the beach as well as some beer and water and settled down on the beach to watch the sunset. Mostly they sat in silence. It was a beautiful view. The sea air was cool. And the two boys are sat side by side as the evening grows darker. When they’ve finished with their food and drinks Connor moves to throw the trash away and heads to the edge of the beach where there is an elderly woman selling drinks from a cart. Connor buys more beers and two cans of some filthy sounding cocktail.

 

“You know,” Jude remarks as Connor sits back down, “the only thing we’re lacking here is some music.” Jude notices their knees touch as Connor gets comfortable.

 

Connor then pulls out his phone and waves it in the air.

 

“Your wish is my command!” He then turns on something that Jude barely recognises as music.

“Oh my God what is this mess?!”

“It’s David Guetta, how do you not like this?!”

Connor then shuffles through a few songs, all of them making Jude’s ears bleed. Drake, Taylor Swift, Britney Spears…until finally a Killers song comes on. Jude likes this one. He starts giggling as the 5th line of the lyrics is sung.

 

_“It started out with a kiss…”_

 

Connor nudges him with his elbow.

 

“What?!”

 

Jude blushes a bit and sighs, but not in an unhappy way.

 

“Nothing…just…the line in the song…how it starts out with a kiss…kind of poetic. Just ignore me!” Jude laughs and takes a large sip of beer.

“Hey…” and Connor nudges him again, playfully still, “do you wanna say some-…are you trying to say something?”

“No Connor…I’m…no,” replies Jude, looking away and draining the can. He goes to reach for a can of the cocktail when Connor puts his arm out.

“Hey,” he says again, and Jude turns to face him, his hand on the can that’s lying on the sand. Jude becomes aware of how close Connor’s face is to his now. After a few seconds Connor starts talking again.

“Jude…” is all he can get out. Connor shifts his position so now he is facing Jude, and moves his legs so he can maintain the gap between their faces. “Are you…you’re looking at me like-”

 

Connor doesn’t get to finish his sentence as Jude makes his move, planting a kiss on Connor’s lips. Jude is expecting Connor to pull away, either in surprise or horror. But he doesn’t. In fact he shifts his position again, so he can reach with one arm and bring it to the back of Jude’s head. As he does he opens his mouth, indicating for Jude to do the same and then for the first time in several years he’s swapping saliva with Jude Adams Foster. After a few seconds Jude breaks the kiss. Then they just sit there, staring at each other. Smiling slightly. But it’s all about the stare. They don’t notice anything going on around them. Not the sun going down. Not the locals who walk past them on the sand and staring, probably because it’s the sight of two boys kissing. They don’t even notice each other’s boners. After a minute or so of staring Connor asks if he can kiss Jude again, to which the brown haired boy nods eagerly in response. The kiss is deeper this time, lasting several minutes until they need to come up for air.

 

“God, I’m so hard,” whispers Jude into Connor’s ear with a giggle.

“Me too…I could get it out right now if we weren’t at risk of arrest and deportation,” which makes Jude laugh out loud. Connor has missed that laugh. It’s been a long time since he has heard it. He wants to hear it more.

“What time is it?” Jude asks.

“Almost 10. Do you…shall we keep hanging out here?”

“Well, being out here is better than going back to that fucking hostel. Not exactly anywhere we can _hang out_ there, is there?”

“No…”

“God, I wish we…I wish one of us was in a hotel right now,” rues Jude.

“Well…I mean…we could…you know…if you wanted to…” replied Connor and he just let it hang there with baited breath.

“Oh…um, well…basically I’m kinda spent up. I’m going home tomorrow and have like…maybe thirty bucks left. Definitely not enough for a hotel room.”

“I’ve…I’ve got a credit card. My Dad made me get one for emergencies. And…you know…this is kind of an emergency…I guess.” And with that Connor gently took his hand and placed it on Jude’s inner thigh, and slowly moved it upwards. “Would you agree that this is an emergency, Jude?” Connor whispers seductively.

“Let’s get the fuck outta here!” he shouts in response.


	6. The Deed, part 1: Cama Matrimonio

Jude had never walked so fast. Connor had picked up quite a pace, moving like his life depended on it, so it took an effort to keep up with him.

 

Within five minutes of leaving the beach they were in the lobby of La Casa Azul, Connor attempting to book a hotel room. Jude’s nervousness gave way to feeling impressed as Connor reeled off some Spanish that made him sound even hotter. Jude didn’t understand most of it but picked up what he could. He understood “…sí, una habitación privada…” and “tarjeta crédito” but it was one other phrase that stood out and made him blush: “um…sí…una cama matrimonio…”. Double bed. Connor briefly looked over at Jude and then quickly away, himself going a deep shade of red. Neither boy noticed the girl on reception smile slightly. She understood. She babbled some other stuff in Spanish which Connor seemed to understand and handed him a room key. They stepped away from the desk, and Connor suggested returning to the hostel.

 

“Um…I need my lens solution…if I sleep with my contacts in…it fucks my eyes up.”

“Oh, okay, sure…it’s pretty close by, right? I’ll come too, get my wash bag…and whatever…”

 

Fast walking again. Breezing into the dorm room. Nobody there. Things get grabbed, pulled out of bags. Jude grabs his wash bag, and dives into the bathroom to brush his teeth. Connor checks he has his lens solution. And a couple of other things.

 

Jude is ready. They leave.

 

In the street. Jude can feel his heart pounding. He’s nervous. Connor is the same. Jude pulls him by the arm gently as they finish crossing the street. They’re a block from the hotel.

 

Jude kisses him. He doesn’t care who sees. He pulls away from the gentle kiss and smiles at Connor. Connor smiles back.

 

After what only feels like a few seconds they’re outside the hotel room. 314. Jude couldn’t tell you about the hotel décor. Or of they passed any other guests. HE remembers an elevator, yes, an elevator. To the 3rd floor. Where their room is.

 

Connor enters and removes the key card quickly. The door unlocks first time. Like a pro. This is a miracle considering his hand was shaking.

 

He stands aside. Let’s Jude in first. Then follows, attempting to be casual. And failing.

 

He closes the door and leans against it. Jude turns around. And approaches, slowly.

 

“So,” says Jude softly, “here we are.”


	7. The Deed part 2: Jonnor Rising

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dedicated to Simon who is the thirstiest person walking the earth.

“WHAT?!”

 

Jude may have said that a little loud. Okay, okay…he shouted it. And it was a little too loud. But it was just so…unexpected. Connor must be…lying? Because why would he lie about that?

 

“I don’t…I don’t understand. You were…you had a boyfriend, right? For a long time. Why wouldn’t you…I mean, how come…?” Jude just let it hang there.

“I…we just…I just never wanted to. I mean…we jerked each other off sometimes, and that was cool, obviously. But I never…he wanted me to blow him and I know he would have wanted more after that but…I just didn’t ever want to. Maybe I didn’t like him enough, or…it just never felt like the right time, you know? I’m pretty sure that was why…one of the reasons he broke it off.”

 

Jude was pressed up against Connor who was still backed up against the door. They hadn’t moved since Connor had broken their wild kiss to confess something…something Jude would never have expected to hear. Connor…the virgin. Could it be true? He had a boyfriend…and looking as he does…

 

“So…are you sure that…I mean…do you w-“

“Jude…I’m ready now…I want to do this…all of this…with you. It just-”

“It’s not my first time,” Jude blurts out. Connor rests his head back against the door but doesn’t break eye contact. He continues in a low voice, his face close to Connor’s. “There was…there was a guy…I met him…on Tinder. I just thought I’d try it out because there…dating guys from school wasn’t an option. So, one night…I was messaging this guy and he was nice and whatever…and we went on a date the next night. And…I went back to his place and we…you know. And it was fine, it was…nice. But I didn’t wanna see him again and I kind of felt a bit like…like I’d wasted it…my first time. I don’t know if that makes sense b-”

“No, I get it. I’d thought about doing that too, you know…for, um, experience, but…” Connor allows his voice to trail off and straightens up, pulling Jude right up against himself. Jude moved his arms around Connor’s neck again, their noses touching.

“So...how do you wanna…I mean…”

“Jude,” Connor whispers against his lips, “the bed is begging us to get in it.” Connor pushes his hips into Jude. Jude can feel _it_ brushing against his leg. He smiles into a kiss and starts walking backwards, pulling Connor with him.

 

It’s grabby. Hands and arms and legs and feet moving everywhere as they attempt to pull their clothes off themselves and each other. Jude becomes pre-occupied with pulling his boxers off when he looks over and sees him. Connor. Lying there. And he’s naked. Totally, utterly, 100% naked. It’s the best thing Jude has ever seen. Boxers discarded naked Jude climbs on top of naked Connor, rock hard cock brushing against rock hard cock. Kissing turns to Jude nipping gently down Connor’s collar bone which turns to Jude planting kisses over Connor’s nipples and down his body. Without so much of a glance or word Jude takes Connor in his mouth. Connor can’t resist watching Jude as he does this. Watching Jude look, strangely, deep in thought, as if it’s taking a lot of concentration. Connor thinks that Jude can concentrate as much as he wants as…and it hits him, when Jude takes almost all of him…and it’s like nothing Connor has ever experienced. And within twenty seconds…it’s over. He’s…he’s…and Jude swallows it all. And Jude keeps…doing it…long after Connor’s head has fallen back against the pillow. He’s not sure how much time has passed before Jude climbs back up his body. Connor pulls him close and pulls Jude’s sweaty brow against his own. They’re both smiling and Connor for sure doesn’t have the words to express how he’s feeling…

 

…and so he rolls Jude over and basically mimics everything that has been done to him. He thinks Jude likes it…he certainly moans loud enough and when he cums…Jude has such a potty mouth, Connor thinks. He can’t help but giggle as Jude shoots down his throat. It makes Connor gag, it’s such a weird sensation, but…he likes it. Fuck, does he like it.

 

They lie there not saying much, holding each other close. For each of them it feels like the most natural thing in the world. To be doing this. To do what they’ve just done.

 

“So,”…whispers Connor after a while, “I’ve got…in my washbag…a bottle of, you know…”

“Oh…good…because we’re gonna…”

“Yeah.”

 

Connor…he’s stirring…it’s stirring. Jude smiles again. He knows what Connor wants to do. And Jude…he wants it. He wants it so badly…


	8. Raising More Than a Smile

Jude isn’t sure if it’s Connor’s touch or the air conditioning, but goosebumps cover his body. Maybe Connor’s breath falling on his face probably is to blame as well. And the two fingers that Connor has had inside him for the last few minutes. Yeah, Jude’s pretty sure it’s the fingers.

 

“Am I…is this, like okay?...” whispers Connor, fitting his question in around Jude’s moaning and whispered swearing.

“Yeah…fuck…I think…okay…let’s go…”

“W-W-What…like, now?”

“Oh yeah,” smiles Jude, moving his face mischievously closer to Connor’s, “no time like the present…”

 

Connor was nervous, he reeked of it. But Jude had this…he could show Connor the way. It didn’t take Connor long to relax though, as he lay on top of Jude, moving inside him slowly, at first, not wanting to hurt him. Jude wasn’t in pain though, despite his whimpering, which turned to moaning, which turned to screaming obscenities as Connor picked up the pace. Screaming especially when Connor hit _that_ spot. Which he did, several times before finishing deep inside Jude, collapsing on top of him, all sweaty brows and panting breaths.

 

“Sorry…I mean…it could have been longer, but…you know…I’m new at tall this” and Connor giggles into Jude’s neck.

“Don’t be sorry,” Jude whispers into his ear, “it was perfect…you’re perfect…”

Connor shifted slightly, not entirely sure what Jude meant by the “you’re prefect” part of the sentence. They hadn’t really discussed what was going on here, apart from the sex. It was like it was deliberately unspoken, and they were just living in the moment. Which was fine. Really. That could wait. For now…just focus. Think about Jude, the boy lying underneath you. Suddenly, Jude shifts, using his hand to keep Connor’s face buried in his neck and he rolls them gently over so he’s on top of Connor. Then he moves his hips and Connor slides out of him, and Jude settles himself between Connor’s legs.

 

“Is this where you take control?” smirks Connor. “Or were you just sick of my lying on top of you?”

Jude smiles and lowers his body weight onto Connor. “Don’t pretend you don’t want me to treat you like your bitch,” he says, following up with a wink.

 

Jude didn’t treat him like a bitch, of course. He was a perfect gentleman. Depending on your point of view that is. Jude took his time, prepping Connor, teasing him with one finger and then another. Pressing soft kisses to his neck and collar bone as he moved his fingers inside him. Jude had this technique down to a tee. Eventually he had Connor begging for it. Pleading like it was all he ever needed. Jude relented…after a period of more teasing. Connor thought he wouldn’t be ready for the pain, that it would overwhelm him. But it wasn’t the pain that he found overwhelming…it was Jude. Jude inside him; Jude moving in such a way that made his back arch; Jude whispering “Connor” into his ear in such a way that sent a shiver down his spine. It was becoming too much, and Jude picked up the pace, hitting Connor in a place that made him see stars, over and over again. Eventually Jude finished, grunting loudly against Connor’s ear, and Connor could feel it shooting inside of him. He didn’t expect to feel that. But it was amazing.

 

“I love you,” his whispered into Jude’s ear. And instantly he regretted it.


	9. “'Cuz baby, Goodbye doesn't mean forever…”

They lie there, on their sides, face to face. Sweaty hair. Sweaty bodies. Legs entwined. Jude is stroking the hair around Connor’s ear. They need a shower, Connor thinks. That would be the sensible thing to do. More sensible than lying here and talking about what he said. Anything would be more sensible than that. Anything…

 

“So…was that…what you said…was it, um, a heat of the moment thing? You know, like…like when I’m screaming things that would probably offend religious people?”

 

Jude was trying to make light of it. He could see that Connor was fretting about having said it.

 

“I don’t mind…that you said it. It’s fine, Connor. Really. If I didn’t like it…I probably would have run out of the room. Witho9ut clothes and whatever. Really would have scared the other guests I think.”

 

Connor smiled now. Bingo, thinks Jude. Just to complete the nice guy process he places a kiss, gently, on Connor’s nose, causing him to blush. Then they lie there in silence again, staring each other out. It’s not intense though…more…contentment. Like this was something that was inevitable, ever since their eyes met in the hostel dorm. Sometime later it’s Jude again who breaks the silence.

 

“So…what happens now. I mean, this…this is…okay, it’s amazing. But is it for now?”

“Now?”

“Like…is this a vacation thing? A holiday romance, or whatever? Or…”

“Oh…”

 

Connor contemplates what Jude is saying. Or is he asking? Well, he thinks, this is probably as good a time as any…

 

“Um…well, I guess that…I’m hoping that maybe it’s not…not just a thing here, you know? Because I’m-”

“But how would we make something work Connor? Were both going to college…and…and the distance thing was a disaster last time, and I just can’t go-”

“I moving back to San Diego.”

 

Jude had gently been running his fingertips over Connor’s upper arm but the words made him stop. His mouth hung open and he started blinking profusely, attempting to comprehend this.

 

“What…I don’t…what, for college?”

“Yeah. They want me in their soccer program, and…my Dad was hoping I’d go to UCLA for baseball but…nah, I like soccer. And, really, San Diego’s my…my home. L.A. has been cool, but…it’s not home, you know?”

Jude nods. Then stops. And nods again. And resumes the touching of Connor’s arm.

“So,” Connor continues, “if we wanted to…you know…see where this goes, then…I guess we can…”

 

Jude doesn’t say anything for a while. He feels a bit cold now. The air conditioning is more noticeable now that they aren’t fucking each other senseless. Connor can feel it and so retrieves the comforter from the floor and throws it over the pair of them.

 

“I do want to Connor…at least I think I do, you know? I just…I don’t…I can’t get hurt again. Last time…it was the worst. Things…got pretty dark for me. So…”

 

Connor pulled Jude closer, and fixed him with a determined stare.

“I’m not going to hurt you. I promise. This doesn’t feel like a one night thing for me. Not at all. I feel safe with you…and this…it feels just…it feels just right. Like we’ve fallen back into…I dunno…what we had before, you know?”

 

Jude buries his face in Connor’s chest and Connor enjoys the feeling of Jude’s breath against him. He’s hoping against hope that he will feel _this_ again and again.

 

Sometime later Connor is pulling out of Jude again and suggests they shower. Jude’s reluctant, happy in the very comfortable, very large bed. But the mention of the breakfast that’s included rouses him. They showered for…well, they don’t keep track of the time but it’s a long one, and they head down to eat.

 

Breakfast is served on the terrace, with a sea view. They’re hungry, and get well fed. They pay extra and get cocktails too. It’s only 10am but they don’t care. Jude suggests a toast and the way Connor looks at him makes him giggle, but they toast to rekindled relationships. And Connor’s Speedos, which makes the blonde blush. Jude has to be at the airport at midday. He explains his route home to Connor, and it sounds arduous. A flight back to the mainland, then a 4 hour layover in Managua, then a flight to Mexico City, then a 6 hour layover in Mexico City, flight to LAX and then train home. It was the only way to get the flights so cheap. Jude sighed, and Connor agreed that it sounded grim. Connor declined to mention that he only has one connection to make when he flies back to L.A.

 

***

 

At 11.45 they are stood outside the hostel, Jude having gathered his things, and they wait for a taxi to come. Jude didn’t want Connor to come to the airport with him; he thought it would be too weird. Not for Connor being there, just if it got all emotional at the check in counter. Jude rested his backpack on the ground, and allowed Connor to pull him into a hug. They didn’t say much. They didn’t need many words. Connor was moving back to San Diego. Connor was coming home. That was enough for now.

 

A taxi pulls up. Jude doesn’t want to let go. Connor doesn’t either. Connor kisses him, softly, and Jude deepens it. The taxi hits his horn, and the kiss ends.

 

“I’ll send you that Facebook friend request,” jokes Connor, and Jude smiles in exchange.

“You’d better. You know I’ll check as soon as I get back!”

 

Connor picks up Jude’s backpack and places it in the back seat. Jude takes Connor’s hand briefly, gets in the taxi and Connor closes the door. Both of them keep the tears at bay. Just. Jude looks back as the taxi pulls away, Connor holding his gaze, and he waves nonchalantly at the disappearing Jude. He stands there for a while, pondering. Then heads inside to connect his phone to the hostel Wi-Fi.

 

***

 

23 hours. That’s how long it took for Jude to get back to San Diego train station. By the time he threw his backpack in the back of the car he was done. He wanted to sleep for a week. Stef chewed his ear off about his adventure on the journey home, and he answered things as best he could. But he was of course distracted. He needed his laptop. He had to check that Connor had sent him a friend request. He wanted to hear from him.

 

When they pulled onto the drive Jude had the passenger door open before Stef had even put the car in park. He hauled his bag inside and was met with a Lena bear hug. He made an excuse about needing the bathroom and raced upstairs. The laptop was exactly where he left it on his desk. He powered it up and waited. 10 seconds…15 seconds…20 seconds…finally!! He opened Facebook and logged in. 21 friend requests. He went into the list, and scrolled. It was all people he had met volunteering. And Thiago the Brazilian.

 

But nothing from Connor.

 

He couldn’t believe it. Connor had promised…

 

Jude felt his heart breaking. Was it all talk? The moving back…the starting over again…

 

 

“I figured the friend request could wait.”

 

 

Jude spun around. In the doorway of the bathroom…he was there.

 

“What….huh?”

“I, um…I changed my flights. I got here early this morning. Figured that…I didn’t wanna wait to have to see you.”

“But…it must have cost you a fortune to change your flights…just for this…just for me…”

“Well,” and Connor reached into his pocket and pulled something out, “my Dad did say this credit card was for emergencies, and…well, this was kinda an emergency. My heart needed saving…”

 

Connor blushed but it was short lived as Jude shot out of the chair and into his arms. His Dad would be annoyed about the credit card but he didn’t care. He had Jude again. Nothing else mattered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read and left kudos and commented. 
> 
> #NeverForgetJonnor


End file.
